What Were You Thinking!
by dave-d
Summary: Companion piece to 'You Had Me At Hello.' Naruto has something he really wants to do with Hinata, but is embarrassed to ask. Why does it have her tied up in knots? [NxH]


The streets below were busy.

Hinata relished the feel of the wind in her hair, as she climbed the long winding spiral stairway on the outside of the building. She smiled. Naruto would be waiting at the top.

"I wonder what he wants." She waved down below. She had caught sight of Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru headed off to lunch. They all had a break from training until later that afternoon. "I _could_ be something romantic."

She blushed for a moment. What if he wanted to kiss her up there, high atop one of the most visible structures in the village? Maybe he was an exhibitionist of sorts. But, _she _definitely wasn't. Then again, ever since that day she had first put her lips on his, while he was struggling to find the right words to express himself with, she had become very fond of kissing.

"Maybe he tried his hand at another poem." Hinata smiled. The last one had been terrible. Unable to lie, she had tried to break things to him softly. He had been devastated just the same. Not simply because he failed. Rather, he was upset that he had risked doing something far out of character, and had done it all for nothing. She hadn't minded. It showed how much he cared. "Or… maybe… he just wants to tell me that he loves me…." She would never get tired of hearing _that._

Slightly out of breath, she crested the final stretch of steps, reaching the flat top of the building. Naruto was there, leaning against a flimsy looking balcony rail. Catching sight of her, he stood straighter and waved.

"Hey! Hinata!" Naruto called out in his usual fashion, but something about his posture caught her eye. Was something wrong? He hadn't changed his mind about her, _had_ he? She began rubbing her fingers together, despite the fact that she had promised to stop doing that. "Would you come over her a second?" That certainly sounded strange. That was where she was headed any way. He knew that!

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata looked up into his eyes. He wouldn't meet her gaze. Now she really _did _feel a queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Is there…. is there something wrong…." How she hoped that he said 'No.'

"No…. nothing wrong…." Naruto laughed an awkward laugh. That was out of the ordinary, too. "It's just… well…." He shuffled his feet a bit. He looked up at the cloudless sky and scratched the back of his neck. His next words came out in a rush. "There is something I would like your help with."

"Is _that_ all?" Hinata brought her hand to her chest. She felt very much relieved. However, something still tugged at the corners of her mind. Naruto was acting as if he was very uncomfortable with some subject or another. She didn't know whether she should be curious or concerned. Her eyes widened and she swallowed hard. It couldn't be _that, _could it? Not this soon in the relationship. The big idiot better not offer her an engagement ring! "I… of course I'll help… what is it that you're asking me…." She began trembling ever so slightly.

"Well… it's kind of an embarrassing thing for me to talk about…." Naruto coughed. "I guess I'm one of the last ones who still hasn't done it." He looked out over the village. "Neji and Ten Ten do it. I know someone experienced like Kureani and Asuma must be quite good at it. I think Sakura has convinced Sasuke to do it, even though he hasn't been back for long." He tapped a number of fingers against the cool steel of the railing. "Sai hasn't thought about it yet; but, he's still learning about relationships and things. Ino wants to do it with Shikamaru. Choji wants to do it with Ino. Shikamaru couldn't be bothered with it." He sighed. "Gai can't get anyone to do it with him. Kiba will do it with _anyone."_

"What…." Hinata was at a total loss. What could Naruto be talking about? As her mind began putting the small pieces of Naruto's conversation together, she felt some warmth coming to her face. She shook her head. There was no way he could be talking about that, either. She shouldn't even be _considering_ such things! "I don't understand, Naruto-kun…."

"Sorry," Naruto said, making a sheepish face. "It really _is _embarrassing… being a guy…. At my age… and never having done it…." He cleared his throat again. "I guess I don't need to make excuses… but…. you know… with Akatsuki… Sasuke… Orochimaru… all that… it took me a _long _time until I had a chance to think about girls." He reached out and squeezed her nearest hand.

"I…." This time, it was Hinata whose throat felt thick. She fluttered one hand for a moment, before taking notice and making herself stop. She shouldn't jump to conclusions. Naruto could be talking about any number of things. "It…."

"Maybe I'm making too much of this," Naruto said, finally able to look at Hinata's face. "But… at least to me… it's something very personal." He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and continued. "That's why I wanted to ask _you_, not some other girl."

"Oh… yes… of course…." Hinata felt like an idiot, saying that before she even knew what he was getting at. But, her hands felt sweaty and her heart was racing. The clues were definitely pointing in a certain direction. What should she do? Should she find some excuse to walk away now, before he had a chance to ask? The last thing she wanted to do was hurt his feelings. What if she turned him down? Would he turn away from her in anger or dejection? But, she shouldn't do anything she wasn't ready for. If it _had_ been about a ring, she would have had to say "no,' because she wasn't ready yet, hoping he would understand her reasons without falling out of love. If it was some other thing… _tha_t other thing… she would have to answer the same way.

"Hinata, you're turning red." Naruto's observation had Hinata biting her lip. "Maybe this is as embarrassing for you as it is for me." He nodded his head. "That might make things much easier." He tugged at one ear. Why was Hinata looking down at her feet that way? "Maybe it's best that we learn about this together. I guess this could be new for you, too."

"Huh!" Hinata looked back up. Her eyes went wide. Did that mean that Naruto originally thought that she might already have... had some kind of experience with… was easy to get to….

"I'm not putting you down or anything!" Naruto rushed to reassure his girlfriend. "You've had a pretty tough life, too." He didn't want her feeling any more uncomfortable than necessary. If it was touchy subject for him, it might be difficult for her. "You probably dreamed about it, but just didn't have the right opportunity." He stood a bit straighter, smiling. "Leave it to Uzumaki Naruto. We'll be the best, in no time. That's my Way of the Ninja."

"Ummm…." Hinata felt dizzy. Her heart was pounding. No, that was the blood in her ears that was pounding. Oh, she really didn't know what was pounding. She had to steady herself, before she toppled over the rail. "What… what are you saying…." She could still be mistaken. He hadn't actually come out and said anything definite. But… at their age… between a boy and a girl….

"You know." The way Naruto said that. The look on his face. His body language. It all made it seem as if he did indeed expect Hinata to know what he meant, as if it should be obvious. That had her swallowing hard, her face growing rather warm. "I mean, it should be pretty easy to guess. People have been doing it from the beginning of time. I suppose it comes natural for everyone but me." He made a face and sighed. "Most people like to do it to music. But that's not a problem. We can buy whatever songs you like." He looked very eager. "We might not be able to get our rhythm down at first. But, that wouldn't be so bad, would it? As long as we're doing it together…."

"I… but…." Hinata froze. Her suspicions had just been confirmed. What _else_ could he be talking about? What should she say? She couldn't believe this was happening? She kept glancing one way and then another, to make certain that no one could overhear them.

"Damn." Naruto kicked at one of the posts that held up the railing. "I wish I was better at this romantic kind of stuff." He took a deep breath and nodded his head. He had to say what was on his mind, regardless. "This kind of thing is usually done in pairs." He looked to Hinata to see if she agreed. She was just standing there, eyes large and lips twitching. "Sometimes it's done in social groups, I think. I got a chance to see some of _that_ kind of thing when Jiraiya dragged me to some of his clubs." He wondered why Hinata has turning the color of a sunset. "But… at our age… I guess a lot of people do it by themselves, too…." He moved quickly when Hinata came close to tipping over.

"I'm… I'm OK, Naruto-kun…." Hinata steadied herself. "But… it's just…." Her mind was buzzing, as it someone had opened her head and dropped a nest of hornets inside. There was a tingling feeling in her fingertips. She had to fight to breath normally.

"Some people make a competition out of it, too," Naruto continued. He saw Hinata flinch. "Not that _we_ would have to!" He had to slow down. "Sometimes, it's with more than one partner." Idiot! Keep it personal. She was looking frightened again. Little steps! "I don't know anything about the etiquette involved. There are probably rules and stuff, _aren't _there? The way that two people look at each other. The way they approach one another. How they come together, and how they leave. Stuff like that."

"I… I wouldn't know…." Hinata took a few steps back, and then stopped. She didn't want to seem cowardly. She also didn't want Naruto to think he was repulsive or something. But, until he actually came out and asked her directly, she couldn't bring herself to say 'No.' She still had hopes that he was talking about something else. Anything else!

"You don't have to be worried," Naruto offered. "We wouldn't have to do it in public at first." That was supposed to reassure her, but she seemed even more uncomfortable. What had he done wrong? "But, if you feel uneasy… doing something like that… alone with me…." He shook his head. He was sounding too wishy washy. He should just explain himself as best as possible, and let the chips fall where they may. "You're not worried about who would be in control, _are_ you?" Could that be the issue?

"N-… N-… Naruto-kun…." Hinata's eyes went even wider than before. There could be no mistake. No mistake at all. While she might be inexperienced herself, she had heard some of the other girls discussing the subject. Missionary this. Doggy that. Kama Sutra. Special devices. This couldn't be happening. She wasn't ready for it. Had she given Naruto the wrong kind of signals? "I… I… I never…."

"I didn't _think_ so," Naruto said, grinning. "You wouldn't worry about that kind of thing. You're a nice girl." He rubbed his chin. "I don't want you to think I wouldn't be flexible, though. If you were better at taking command, I would let you do it. I'm not too proud to do that for you, Hinata-chan." He shrugged. "Even though the male partner usually leads, and the female follows."

"Naruto… I can't… I don't think I'm ready… this is all too soon…." Hinata had said what she wanted to say. But, if she could barely hear her own words, there was no way that Naruto could have heard.

"Huh? Hinata?" Naruto had seen her lips move, but didn't catch a single word. "Hey! You don't have to thank me for feeling that way! I'm a real man!" He grinned, pleased with himself. "Although… I have to admit… I feel like a little boy when it comes to this…." He put both hands behind his neck, looking up at the sky again. "I don't know the right cues and stuff. I don't know how to communicate what I want my partner to do. I don't know how to move the right way. I don't know when we should be face to face, or back to front. I don't even know where to put my hands." He sighed. "I think my right hand should be on your back, around the level of your bra line." He blushed, saying 'bra'. "That would be the easiest way to pull you towards me. I think my left hand is supposed to hold your right, but not too tightly. I guess hip contact will be important at times, too." He felt a drip of sweat run down the side of his face.

"**NO!"**

Hinata hated to shout like that. But, she didn't have any choice. She had to get this out.

"What?" Naruto looked taken aback. He wasn't surprised that she might reject his request, but he didn't expect her to be so vehement about it.

"**I'M SORRY, NARUTO-KUN... I LOVE YOU... I REALLY DO... ****BUT I'M NOT READY FOR SEX!"**

There. She had done it. She felt better, now. Hopefully he wouldn't take offense.

"Hinata?" Naruto went stiff. His eyes grew very large. "What did you say?" It was his turn to twitch a bit_. "Sex?" _He looked at her as if for the very first time. "And they worried about _me, _went I went away to train with Ero-Sennin." He pointed at her. "You've got a dirty mind!"

"N-… N-… Naruto-kun…." Hinata was shocked, hearing that last claim. "H-… How could you say that…." She clasped her two hands together. "Af-… After you talked about…."

"Huh?" Naruto made a face. He cocked his head, trying to read Hinata's expression. "I was talking about dancing." He pursed his lips. How could anyone get the wrong impression?

"D-… D-… D-…." That revelation finally proved too much for Hinata. Before she knew it, she found her view of her surrounding changing rapidly. She had teetered over the railing. If Naruto hadn't acted swiftly, she might have been seriously injured.

"Hey! Don't get too excited! It's not like you have to teach me how to dance." He moved her gently over to a large ornate bench so she could sit. "After all, the only reason I wanted to dance was so I could dance with _you." _He sat down next to her. "I didn't know what you expected from me. I didn't want to disappoint you."

"Oh…." Hinata blushed again. She felt like such a dolt, even though she had no doubt that any number of normal people might have come to the same conclusion. "That's very sweet of you." Moved, she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you."

"It's no big thing." Naruto smiled, looking pleased with himself. "As long as you're happy." He sat there with her holding hands, until she was ready to head off for practice. When they both stood up, he returned to his original topic. "So. Do you want to do it? Dancing, I mean…."

"Yes." Hinata nodded, and then leaned against him for a moment. She gave him a quick hug. "As long as it's with you."

"Good." Naruto grinned. He had a very mischievous look in his eye. That kind of thing never bode well. Not at all! "I have an important question, then."

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata should have known better than to reply.

"Should we do it with our clothes on or off?" A big smile lit up his face. The only thing he liked as much as kissing Hinata was teasing her.

"You…." Hinata truly loved Naruto. He meant the world to her. She would give her life to protect him. But, for one brief instant, she pictured something in her mind that was quite at odds with all that.

She imagined herself pushing him over the edge.

**END**


End file.
